News and insight into biometric identification and authentication

UK awards De La Rue E-Passport contract

Friday, June 12, 2009

De La Rue Identity Systems announced that it has been selected as preferred bidder to design and produce the UK Passport for the Identity and Passport Service (IPS), part of the Home Office.

The 10-year contract to deliver the UK biometric passport was awarded following a international tender process conducted by IPS and is subject to contract. The total value of the contract over this period is expected to be in the region of $662 million.


De La Rue Identity Systems has implemented more than 50 secure identity management solutions and has recently been selected to produce the UK Emergency Travel Document. The company produces e-passports for the Bahamas, Malta and the State of Qatar, enhanced driver licences for the State of New York and national ID cards for a large number of countries across the world

It also designs, develops, implements and supports government identification systems for passports, e-passports, visas, ID cards, driver licenses and voter registration schemes. [end] 

After a nearly three-year delay, the Algerian government has finally launched its biometric passport program.

Magharebia reports that the biometric passports, which contain a contactless smart card chip that holds a digitized photo, fingerprints and signature, were supposed to be released in 2009. But the documents were delayed due to complexities with the operation of the project and the need to thoroughly research and analyze other countries’ experiences with biometric passports.

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As part of the U.S. Department of State’s initiative to simplify and streamline customer service interactions and processes, the Office of Passport Services has started a 90-day pilot program for online passport card applications.

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CBP denies report

A Canadian man uses a scanned image of his passport from his iPad to get past Customer and Border Protection officials, according to a report from the AP.

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In an effort to streamline passenger security, Jakarta, Indonesia’s Soekarno-Hatta Airport has opened the country’s first biometric immigration gate.

Fingerprint biometric identification provider BIO-key International, Inc. and Oakwell Engineering Limited partnered to create the new gate, designed for use by passengers with electronic passports. Passengers submit their e-passports and authenticate with a fingerprint.

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Intercede announced that it was awarded an order for the supply of Intercede MyID Identity and Credential Management software licenses totaling more than $1 million. This contract is in support of the issuance of ICAO compliant smart card travel documents. The country and partner cannot be named at this time.

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The Emirates Identity Authority (EIDA) announced that the registration of Emirati newborns is now mandatory for electronic passports (e-passport) and ID cards, according to ArabianBusiness.com.

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